Wow, it's still tiny at 6.7" arc, but you can see some features. It was hard to decide what I was seeing, but Mare Cimmerium looked a little familiar with it's greenish tint on the southern limb. It was a tad lighter south of there.

The polar cap was easy, as was what looks to be Utopia - just barely - and Mare Boreum. Apparently Syrtis Major was on the limb, but I could not make it out. One white spot consistent with Libya was spotted.

Mars was still quite low at 28 Dec 2100UT, give or take. It was rolling pretty badly in the seeing, probably Ant IV. But it cleaned up enough to make out some tiny features at 360x.

Okay, first mars of the season. Yippee!

Forgive my template, still trying to figure out how to make the phase look better.

Attached Files

Better?!? Looks great to me, Norme. All of you sketchers are bad influences. I think I'm going to have to give this little guy a try.

Anyway, for a gibbous disk of less than 7" of arc this is an impressive observation to my eyes. I don't know the features of the red olive. Is that little bump of dark at the top right Terra Sirenum? Is south up? Where do you get your feature data?

I think I'll dust off the little newt if seeing continues to plague us just so I can give Mars a go.

All, typing on android is difficult plus got Jove on the zenith. Jasin" I'll get that to you soon. Pete, okay that was funny, gotta fly up there and kick you out tge back door, I suppose, to see Mars. I think mine was Ant IV. Ug! But it settled enough. More later.

Jason, a little rusty on Mars, but here are three nice references. Speaking of that, it was truly a different experience than Jupiter. Not sure how, exactly, just different. Of course it was smaller, different color, all that. Maybe it was the feature contrast. Dunno.

A great sketch to kick off the Mars season. Good colors on the sketch. I did observe it Sunday morning but the seeing was pretty bad with only a hint of the NPC. Mars is such a cool planet it will be good to see it again.

Very nice sketch work and details with Mars being so diminutive as yet at only 6.7" arc.
I have not looked at the JPL Simulator for some time but here it is for your sketch time > http://s10.photobuck...rDec28201321...

*Sorry I cannot seem to get images to display as open here in my response as it has been so long that I posted images, but you'll see the Mars image from JPL linked site here if not in my Photobucket photo hosting. >
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Mark, yes, I had to use JPL sim and Mars Previewer to understand what I was seeing. That's how small Mars is.

Thank you. I am not going to put this sketch up against one of yours, though. So, rest easy.

Dean, yea, it's coming. Man, last night...I observed again but fell victim to looking way too hard at it in Ant III seeing. There was some faint dark shading about mid northern latitudes. Maybe some illusion. I thought it might be a very weak Mare Acidalium. Wrong! I blew the observation. Mare Cimmerium was still in the south, Utopia near the limb, but not really seen.